Right Here
by The Yellow Rubber Ducky
Summary: Thalia is asked to visit a ten year old boy in the hospital, suffering from leukemia and colon cancer. She finds peace with him, and gets attached. No, it's not a Romance. Just Friendship.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: This story is about Thalia Grace, and a young boy she encounters as she continues down her path of the Hunters.**

**Listen to 'Cancer' by My Chemical Romance**

* * *

Thalia's PoV:

I was walking to a coffee shop in Manhattan, during my break from the Hunters. Lady Artemis told me I could have a month break, after all the hard work I'd done, even after I insisted how many times that I should stay.

Percy and Annabeth had passed away, just a few years ago, and I was a little sad, after losing my two best friends. But I had to move on, and continue serving Lady Artemis.

After I'd finished my coffee, I walked to a hospital, where Gwen, one of the Hunters, were staying, to watch out for this and that. (I have no idea why she was positioned there)

I saw Gwen, who was the receptionist, and leaned over the counter.

"Hey Gwenie," I said, smiling at her.

She grinned back at me. "What's up, Thals?" she asked, and I shrugged. "I'm off. Need any help?" I asked. "Well- could I ask you a favor?" she asked, suddenly troubled.

"Sure," I said, curious.

She gestured me to come closer, and started whispering in my ear.

"There's a little boy in Room 107. He's really sick, and his parents never visit him. He's got colon cancer and leukemia, and he's only ten," she whispered.

My heart dropped, and I felt pity for the boy.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"I usually visit him during this time, but I'm getting kinda busy. Could you do me a favor, and visit him?" she asked.

I considered it. Usually, Hunters couldn't really be in contact with boys. But this was a special case, I could tell. The look in Gwen's eyes told me that he needed someone desperately, and I couldn't help it.

"Of course, I will. What's his name?" I asked.

"Tony. Tony Maxwell," she said.

"Okay. Do I just head down there?" I asked. "One sec," she said, and typed something into the computer. She handed me a visitor's sticker, and I stuck it on my black My Chemical Romance shirt.

"Down the hall, there will be an elevator and a flight of stairs. Go upstairs, two levels, and turn right. His room will be the second one on the left," she said.

"Okay. I'll see you, then," I said.

* * *

I followed Gwen's directions, and found Room 107.

I opened the door, and laying on the bed was someone that looked very familiar in a strange way.


	2. Chapter 2

The boy laying on the bed had deep blue eyes, eyes that looked very familiar to me. **(AN: If you can guess who I'm referring to, review your answer and I'll give you a "cookie"! Yeah, good prize, right?)**

The boy looked at me, his eyes sunken and pale.

"Who are you?" he croaked. My heart fell. The boy looked so ill, it made me cry inside.

I shook it off, and and answered, "I'm Thalia Grace. I've come to visit you." The boy regarded me with sad eyes. "Yeah, right." "Huh?" I asked. "No one ever visits me. Why would you visit me?" Yeah. This guy _does_ remind me of someone.

I thought about it.

"I was asked to. Miss Gwen told me she was busy, and she asked me to fill in for her," I said.

"Oh."

Silence.

"So...how are you?" I asked. The boy looked at me. Bad question. "In my condition, I suppose I'm fine," he said. "You're....Tony, right?" I asked. He nodded, and winced. "Are you okay?" I asked, concerned. "Yeah. I think so. I'm used to it," he mumbled.

"Okay. Do you need anything? Like-- water, or something?" I asked. I wanted to make sure his needs were attended to, because Gwen said they usually never were.

"Yeah," he croaked, his voice raspy and dry.

I walked over to the dispenser in a corner of his room, and poured some water out into a cup. I handed it to him, and he reached for it greedily, his lips parched.

He took a long gulp, and sighed.

"I hate this," he mumbled. I frowned.

"There's never anything to do. All I do all day is eat, sleep, drink, sleep, eat, drink," he said coldly. I leaned forward. "Do you want me to tell you a story?" I asked.

He raised his eyebrows.

"What kind of story?" he asked. "A story about a boy and a girl, who fight in a war against a Titan. Do you know anything about the Greek Gods?" I asked. He nodded, and gestured to a book on his bedside table. "I got a book about them from Miss Gwen for my eighth birthday," he said.

"Good, good. Now, there was a boy named Percy, and a girl named Annabeth. Percy was a son of Poseidon, and Annabeth was a daughter of Athena. Percy had gone to a camp called..."

* * *

For how many hours, I told him about Percy and Annabeth, from the time they met, to the time they were honored by the Gods.

He was asking me questions all the time, but I wasn't annoyed, or bothered. He had a right to ask. Of course, I didn't tell him that the Gods were still alive. I just made some changes, making them centered in Greece, Athens, and some other places.

He would ask me about the Minotaur, about the Gods, and about Percy and Annabeth. Sometimes he would ask me about the "Girl turning into a tree" part, but I wasn't bothered. He would never know the truth.

We sat in silence for a while, and he looked at me, sad.

"What's wrong with me?" he asked.

My heart dropped. "What do you mean?" "I've got all these diseases and illnesses, and everything happens to me," he said sadly. I took his hand in mine, and looked at him in the eyes.

"There is _nothing_ wrong with you, Tony. You're just a good person who bad things have happened to," I said. He regarded me, and nodded, as if considering that.

A few minutes later, nurse came in, and told me that visiting hours were over.

Before I left, Tony looked at me hopefully.

"Will you come back tommorow, Thalia?" he asked, his eyes brighter than I first saw him. I thought about it. He looked hopeful, as if he wanted me to come back.

"Of course, Tony. Of course I will," I said.

"Promise?" he asked.

I smiled at him, and nodded. "I promise."

"I'll see you then," he said, smiling weakly.

* * *

I walked back to the reception desk, and Gwen smiled at me.

"Thank you. I really appreciate it," she said.

"No problem. And um...." I paused. "You wanna come back tommorow?" she asked knowingly. I smiled at her. "Don't worry. Lady Artemis won't know a thing," she said.

"Thanks, Gwen. I'll see you tommorow, right?" I asked. She nodded, and waved, and attended to another visitor.

As I walked outside, and looked in the direction of Tony's room.

_Of course, Tony. Of course I'll come back._


	3. Chapter 3

Everyday for three weeks, I visited Tony, and every day, I'd tell him a new story, give him some water, ask him about his day, and then by that time, a nurse would walk in, and tell me that visiting hours were over. Every day, he looked worse. He got paler, his lips got drier, and his voice would get weaker. I had to help him drink water by holding the cup to his lips. He was too weak to even hold the cup.

But his personality was bright, and sometimes, it was almost as if he was a normal kid, and I was the visitor that came to his bedroom every night to tell him a bedtime story.

But today was different.

I walked to the hospital, coffee in my hands.

"Hey Gwen. I brought you a frappuccino," I said, handing her the coffee. She looked exhausted. "Gods, thanks Thals. I really needed that," she said thankfully, and I smiled. Her eyes were red.

The smile slid off my face, and I got worried.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"It's Tony," she whispered. "What's wrong with him?!" I demanded.

"There-there's something wrong with him- he's losing the ability to live, Thals," she cried. "No. No. He can't die. It's not possible," I said, my voice hard. I ran to his room.

He was laying down on his bed, his skin pale white, his eyes sunken and empty.

I saw a small flicker of a flame in his now pale navy blue eyes, and a tear escaped me.

"Tony..." I whispered. I held his hand, which was rough a sand-paper like. "Thals..." he croaked.

"I'm here, Tony. I'm here," I cried.

"Thals...I'm gonna die." I froze. "No. No you're not, Tony. I won't let you," I cried. "Thals...there's no stopping it. I know I'm going to die. I've known it for years. I _am _going to die," he said.

Tears now flowed freely from my eyes, and I sniffed.

"Promise me, though. Promise me you'll be with me, until I die. No matter how hard the nurses pull you away, please promise me you'll be there....when I....die," he whispered. "Of course. I'll be right here," I sobbed.

After a while I grew quiet, and we sat in silence.

"What is it like to die?" he asked suddenly.

I looked up. "Tony, I don't know what it's like to die, but I know what it's like to be on the verge of dying," I said.

He nodded.

We sat in silence again, and he spoke up. "Thals...those stories you told me. It's like you were _there_. Were you?" he asked, looking up at the ceiling. I considered telling him. I considered telling him everything--about the gods, about demigods, about Percy, about Annabeth, and about me, and I thought....maybe he deserved to know.

"You can't tell anyone," I whispered.

He smiled weakly at me.

"Thals, I'm about to die. I don't think I'll have time to tell anyone, much less the walls," he said.

"Okay, I was there. I fought in the Titan War. Tony- the gods are real, and they're still here," I said. He considered that. "That's good to know," he said. "Did you know Percy and Annabeth?" he asked. I nodded. "They were my best friends," I said. "Are they still alive?" he asked.

"No...they passed away four years ago," I said.

I was still holding his hand, and he was still staring up at the ceiling.

"If they died, what are you still doing here?" he asked. I told him about the Hunters of Artemis. His eyes widened, and he sat in silence. "That must be nice....living forever," he said wistfully.

"Not really," I smiled. "Sometimes it gets boring."

He laughed weakly, and winced.

"Are you okay?" He nodded.

We sat in silence once again, and he looked at me, his eyes sad.

"When I die- will you remember me?" he asked weakly. I put both of my hands around his, and nodded. "Forever," I said.

"That's good."

He closed his eyes, and I was afraid he'd died.

"Tell me about the Underworld. Tell me about Elysium," he said, his eyes still closed. I told him everything about the Underworld and Elysium, and he sighed. He tilted his head to face me, and opened his eyes.

"Do you think I'll go to Elysium?" he asked, wistfully.

"Of course. You're a good person, Tony," I said.

"Okay. I believe you," he said, and turned to face the ceiling. "I hope it goes fast," he mumbled. "What goes fast?" "My death. I want it to be short and painless. Do you think it'll be that way?"

I honestly didn't know what to tell him.

How do you tell a ten year old boy that he's going to go.... never mind.

"I don't know, Tony. I don't know," I said, and I held his hand in mine. "But I'll be here the whole time, right here," I said.

He sighed.

"I want to thank you," he said.

"For what?" I asked. "For being there when my parents weren't. For sitting next to me for long periods of time. For helping me with everything. And for encouraging me. If it wasn't for you, I would be gone already," he said. "Please don't talk about you being gone," I whispered, on the verge of tears.

He sat up, which looked painful for him, and held out his arms. I hugged him, not to tightly, to not crush him.

He laid back down, and held my hand.

"I think it's time."

"Time for what?!" I asked, panicked. "It's time for me to go, Thals. I've waited to long. The chemo isn't working anymore. I can feel the pain coming back. It's time," he said, and he winced.

"No. No!" I stammered.

It was like I could feel his life draining away from him. His eyes looked empty, and the flame flickered, and finally blew out.

"Elysium....Thals....Thank you....so much," he croaked, and tears began falling from my eyes.

"Tony..." I cried.


End file.
